We went to see the documentary “Iris” tonight. It is about Iris Arfel, a 93-year-old fashion maven, who has such joie de vivre that it’s truly inspiring. I would highly recommend this documentary. If you’re not interested in clothes, don’t worry. You’ll love Iris and learn from her example. I believe this film is now…
Category: Stories
Mother Bodies
I used to have a flat stomach. I remember having one at least. I also remember having breasts that were a normal size, not the jugs I have now, which seem to be the result, at least in part, of seven years of nursing three little girls. Yes, seven. Two, two and three for the…
My Mother’s Birthday and St. Stephen’s Church
Today is my mother’s birthday; she would be turning 97. Alas, we lost her 15 years ago to lung cancer, a full 20 years after she stopped smoking. It seemed only fitting that we were in Sherman today and were able to attend St. Stephen’s Episcopal church here. This was the church where my mother…
Back in North Texas
I am sitting in our house in Sherman alone; Ray has gone off to play a trivia game with our friends. I am not ready for that. I am barely here, only arrived a few hours back. Besides, I can’t remember the last time I was in this house alone. Well, the truth is our…
A Memory of Mom…
Today I worked with a graduate student in Psychology on a paper on “Differentiation in Family Systems.” Differentiation is basically when children establish their own personhood that is separate from the family unit. I remember a moment when I was 13 when this concept played out in my own life. When I was 13, I…
Pat’s Story: An Eye-Opener
Last Saturday at the St. Thomas the Apostle Breakfast Club, which caters to those who can’t afford a hot breakfast – meaning the poor and homeless – I struck up a conversation with one of our regulars, a woman named Pat. Normally, I don’t probe into our patron’s situations. I don’t want to pry and…
A Welcome Discovery Related to Writing
Today I worked on my novel. I have discovered an excellent way to get this done during the week when I often have trouble finding time for my writing. I have a writing friend – one of my former students who has since graduated from college with a writing degree – who comes every week…
Back to the Pure Fun of Writing a Novel
I am back to working on my novel, one scene at a time. This has been an off and on process for the past couple of years, but now I am regularly putting pen to paper (yes, handwritten) and am moving forward. I have determined that handwriting my first draft produces a deeper, slower look…
A Visit to Chapman University, Fowler School of Law
Today, Rachael, Luna and I traveled to the City of Orange to visit Fowler School of Law at Chapman University. This is the school that has offered Rachael a full scholarship. Neither of us had been to Chapman before so we didn’t know what to expect. The gist: the admissions officer knew exactly who Rachael…
Learning from the HBO Series “In Treatment”
Today, I worked with one of my adult students on a paper she is writing for her graduate course in Clinical Psychology. The paper focused on the patient-therapist relationship in the HBO television series In Treatment, starring Gabriel Byrne. The assignment was to write a paper detailing what the therapist did right, what he did…
20 Minutes a Day 